Man charged in crash that killed three teens

HOUSTON Prosecutors say Sajan Timalshina, 25, was drunk when he ran a red light at the intersection in northeast Houston on Friday morning and slammed into an SUV carrying seven teenagers inside.

Avianca Cortez, 13, and Rashaunda Raleigh, 17, were ejected from the SUV and died at the scene. A third victim, Detrihanna Davis, 13, died later that night at the hospital as a result of injuries she sustained from the crash. Investigators say none of the seven passengers was wearing a seat belt.

According to court documents, Timalshina failed a field sobriety test and refused to give a blood sample, so officers took a mandatory sample. Experts estimate Timalshina's blood alcohol concentration was between 0.127 and 0.162 at the time of the crash, higher than the legal limit in Texas of 0.08.

Court documents also state that Timalshina said he had worked 16 hours that day, but only drank about one-quarter of a 12oz bottle of beer on the night of the accident. Timalshina said he was tired from his long work day and he got confused when he saw a green traffic light further up the road, the documents read.

A warrant is out for Timalshina's arrest.

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